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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wound · pop · clip · kid · stick · cap · swing · bulb

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. clip — to cut
  3. swing — in golf
  4. kid — to tease
  5. swing — music
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pop — soda
  9. clip — a video
  10. cap — a hat
  11. bulb — for light
  12. clip — for paper
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. kid — child
  15. swing — to play on
  16. bulb — for light
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cap — of ice
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. pop — to visit
  24. stick — a piece of wood

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com